Where Were You?
by thinking hurts my brain
Summary: Annabeth's POV when Percy is on Calypso's Island. This will include the following: Mental breakdowns, a visit from a goddess, lots of tears, and of course, some Percabeth fluff.


**A/N: I have a joke for y'all.**

**Joke: I own Percy Jackson.**

**My joke is complete bs.**

**This is Annabeth's pov when Percy get's sent to Calypso's island. I know it's not an original idea, but this is my take on the situation.**

**R&R! Flames welcome!**

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"PERCY!" I screamed. I packed years of pent-up frustration, tears, and emotions into that one single word. That beautiful name of that beautiful boy. I packed my freaking soul into that word.

I heard it, then I felt it. The roar deafened me, and the shock-wave blasted me forward into the door of Hephaestus' forge. My head, ears, and heart were bleeding, but I pulled myself together enough to open the door. I stepped in, and looked at the deformed god. My eyes were puking dirty tears.

He got up and lumbered towards me. I wasn't afraid. If Percy was dead, then I had to stand up like he would. I held my chin defiantly, and Hephaestus said, "I suppose I won't say I told you so." I couldn't keep my face straight. I could feel it scrunch up, and I cried even harder, if that was possible. I let out sobs of agony, and I think he pitied me. He touched my forehead, and suddenly I was back at camp. I was standing ankle-deep in the ocean, and it reminded me of Percy, which brought on a new wave of hurt.

I crouched down, holding my knees to my chin. I imagined how pathetic I looked, and I hated it. The tears just kept coming. I didn't understand how one person could hurt so much and not break. I envisioned myself crouched on the beach, weak and alone... I loathed it. So, I allowed myself one more tear. After that, I got up, brushed the sand off me, and marched into camp.

Silena saw me first. Her eyes widened, and she mouthed the word _no_. She ran for me, and pulled me into a sisterly embrace.

"Stop," I said. "You're just going to make me cry again." Silena pulled away, but didn't release my hand. She led me toward the Big House, and there was a lot of whispering behind hands as we walked. I swear everyone at camp asked me where Percy, Tyson, and Grover were. I told them all the same thing: "Chiron will explain later."

"Well Princess, where's Prissy?" Clarisse demanded, stepping in front of me. I was fed up with answering people, and my eyes were watering again, but I tried not to let her see it. That would just make her gloat more. Instead, I just walked around her. I heard her yelling at me to come back, but I ignored her.

We walked in the door, Chiron sat by the fire, in human-form. Mr. D was still gone on errands for Zeus, and I didn't complain. Chiron took one look at me, and one at Silena, then said, "Silena, perhaps some hot chocolate is in order?" She nodded and headed for the kitchen. As soon as she was gone, Chiron told me in a hushed voice, "Annabeth, tell me everything that happened."

I did.

I didn't tell him about me kissing Percy, but I think he suspected that something happened between us. When I told him that Percy sacrificed himself to save me, I could physically see Chiron age several years. Great. Now I was choking back tears again. Silena brought me my hot-chocolate, and left, thank the Gods. I didn't want anybody seeing me like this.

After about a half hour, two boxes of Kleenex and a cold mug of hot chocolate, I was ready to try to look presentable. I went to the bathroom and looked in the mirror. The girl I saw there was still seven years old. She had puffy, red-rimmed, grey eyes, and her hair looked worse than Medusa's. She was covered from head-to-toe in grime, except for the clean tear-tracks from her eyes to her chin.

I felt like that frightened seven year old too. What was I supposed to do? Percy was my rock, the thing that was always constant in my ever-changing life. If he wasn't there, then who could I turn to? Who would own that shoulder that I needed to cry on? Who would constantly cheer me up with smart-alec remarks? Who would annoy me to the point of insanity? Who would I talk to, argue and laugh with?... Who would I love?

_He might not be dead_, that little annoying voice said in the back of my head.

"No, shut up!" I told myself. I took a deep breath. "If you don't stay calm, then you'll start crying," I said aloud. "Iif you let yourself, hope, you'll just be all the more crushed when he doesn't come back." I glanced in the mirror again, and my eyes weren't as puffy as they had been before, so I headed down to my cabin.

Juniper came running out of the woods. "Annabeth!" she yelled. "Where's Grover?" I shook my head. "Oh, Gods, is he alright? Where are Percy and Tyson?"

I inhaled deeply, trying to stay calm. "Grover and Tyson are still down in the labyrinth. And Percy-" my voice cracked. "He's..." I couldn't say dead. I couldn't. Because I knew that he wasn't dead, he couldn't be. Percy would never let some stupid sea dog demons kill him. "Chiron will tell you later," I said eventually. Juniper started crying, and I put my arm her shoulders.

_This is who I'm supposed to be,_ I thought to myself. _The girl who always stands tall, even when hope escapes Pandora's Jar._ I wanted to cry too, but instead, I comforted Juniper. I told her that Grover and Tyson could take care of themselves, and that I was sure they were fine, but my heart wasn't in it. I left my heart behind in that volcano with that beautiful boy with beautiful sea-green eyes, and his beautiful stunned expression after I kissed him.

I allowed myself a sad smile.

I got down to my cabin, but nobody asked me what happened, which was unusual. It would either be Silena or Chiron. I was guessing Silena, because her boyfriend, Beckendorf, could pulverize anyone at camp if they upset me.

I sat down on my bunk. Malcom, my half-brother, sat next to me and put his arm around my shoulder. I leaned on him. We sat like that for a long time, before I heard the conch horn blow for dinner.

I led the line, and we all scraped part of our dinner into the flames. _Please, anyone, Zeus, Posidon, Hephaestus, please, Please, PLEASE let Percy be safe,_ I thought in my head. I walked back to my table and sat down. It sounded like one of the Stoll brothers was going to ask me something, but Silena cleared her throat, and he shut his mouth.

I nodded my thanks at her, then turned my attention to my food... but not really. I was thinking about Percy the whole time. People kept giving me weird looks, but I didn't even care. We went down to the campfire pit for a sing-along, and Chiron made his announcement.

"As you can all see, Percy Jackson has gone missing. If he doesn't show in two weeks, he will be declared KIA." In the back of my head, I thought it was kind of funny that he used a military term. "In the meantime, we will all pray for his safe return. Annabeth, would you like to tell them what happened?" I got up and nodded.

I stood in front of the flames, but they didn't provide much heat, considering everyone's mood. I told them what happened in the labyrinth, and at Mt. St. Helens. Everyone sat in a stunned silence.

"Wait, wait. So let me get this straight," said Travis (or was it Connor?) Stoll. "Percy somehow managed to blow up a volcano? How did he do that?"

"I don't know, but he sacrificed himself, and I'll owe him forever," I said. "I... I think I'm going to go to bed now," I said.

There was some muttering behind me, but I heard Chiron say, "The girl is exhausted, she just needs some time to collect her thoughts."

I went to my cabin and cried myself to sleep. I felt weak and vulnerable and I hated it. "Damn you, Aphrodite. Damn you and these freaking hormones and feelings and tears," I said as I drifted off. I had an odd dream.

I was at the beach on a beautiful island. The ocean was green and blue, and the sand was white like flour. I turned inland, and started walking. I broke through a line of palm trees, and stumbled into the most beautiful garden I had ever seen. There were flowers of every color, shape and size.

There was a small cave in a cliff covered with Clematis. I crept in slowly, and peeked around the corner. In a room with a roof of glowing crystals, there was a four-poster bed with a jumble of white sheets. Peeking out of the top of the blankets, I saw a mess of black hair. I ran forward to see who owned it, although I had a pretty good guess already.

It was Percy. His eyebrows were almost gone, his hair was singed, and his skin pink and burned, but I thought he looked beautiful. I watched him sleep for Zeus knows how long, and eventually, a girl with caramel hair and in white Grecian dress walked in. She had a bowl of pudding ambrosia just like the stuff I spoon-fed Percy when he first arrived at camp.

She knelt down on the floor next to the bed, and scooped some of it up and into his mouth.

"Annabeth," he mumbled. My heart nearly stopped, and he said my name again, smiling. "butter popcorn pudding mmm..." The stranger girl brushed his hair back from his face lovingly. I wanted to slap her hand away, but I was so grateful that she was taking care of him.

"I should be the one doing that," I think to myself. "I'm always the one who takes care of him when he's sick." She continued to spoon-feed him until all the ambrosia was gone.

"Annabeth, you smell like lemons," he says, grinning stupidly in his sleep. I smiled. When he hugged me in my cabin before we left, he must have smelled my shampoo.

"Sleep well, Percy Jackson. Dream of Annabeth, whom ever she is. I'm sure she's dreaming of you too." She stroked his face and stood up. "And you are dreaming of him, aren't you, Annabeth?" she asked looking directly at me. I blinked and woke up.

I sat up, and heard the snores and mumbles of my brothers and sisters. I grabbed my sketch pad and pencil, my knife, and my Yankees hat, and quietly slipped out of my cabin. I kept on the lookout for harpies, and crept toward the beach.

I sat in the on the end of the dock, looking out across the glassy water. I dipped my feet in, and loved the cool sensation on my bare feet. I could smell the salty brine of the sea, and I sighed. I tried to sort out my dream, but I couldn't make any sense of it.

"Was that girl Calypso?" I said aloud to myself. "Why was she so caring towards him? What is her motivation? Why do I feel this way? How did Percy get there? Is he alright? Where is he, and how can I find him?" I asked myself all of these questions, but no answers came. I absolutely hated not knowing. Kind of the curse/blessing of children of Athena; We have to know everything.

I sighed again, this time out of exasperation. I put my sketch pad on my lap, and started drawing plans for one of the monuments I was going to build for the Gods.

"You know, you could just ask for help," I heard a silky voice say. A woman stood next to me. She was about twenty, and she was absolutely gorgeous. Long, flowing chestnut hair, and warm golden eyes. She was dressed in a knee-length red satin dress. She snapped her fingers, and a hot pink pillow popped out of no where. She took a seat on it beside me.

"Aphrodite?" I guessed.

"Oh, you children of Athena are so smart! I didn't even have to tell you who I was! Not like I had to tell Percy. I will never forget the look on his face when I visited him! So adorable!"

"Wait, you visited Percy?" I said, a laugh creeping into my voice.

"Oh, yes, last summer. Oh, Zeus, he was so determined to find you, after all, when you were kidnapped by that disgusting Manticore, he was absolutely devastated. At first, he couldn't go on the quest and poor Percy was heartbroken. So, I gave him a little push in the right direction, and he came to find you anyway. Isn't that sweet?"

"Um, yeah... Why are you here?" I asked feeling kind of stupid.

"Oh, Annabeth, I see I have to give you a little push too. Well, I'm here to answer your questions about Percy."

"Really? Where is he? Is he ok-"

"No, no not those questions. I mean the questions about your feelings for him! You said it yourself 'Why do I feel this way?' So, I'm here to answer that! After all, you two are my favorite couple at the moment, although Travis and Katie..."

"Are you going to tell me or not?" I demanded, getting sick of the goddess' rambling. I chose to ignore the comment about us being a 'couple'. I'm sure she would tell me soon enough.

"Patience is a virtue," Aphrodite said. "The reason is that you're obviously in love with him!"

"I already know that," I said looking down at my lap. I could feel her surprised gaze. "Why else would it hurt this much to have him gone?" I asked, mostly to myself, tears in my eyes. I watched as a drop fell into the water below, and salt mixed with salt. "I was more thinking what love is. It's not just lust. That's completely different. And it's not just caring for someone. It's something more, but I can't figure it out." Aphrodite gave me a sympathetic look.

"Oh, Annabeth. You really are a smart young lady, but seriously, lay off the thinking and follow your heart! That's what love is! You know that Percy loves you. You heard it yourself in your dream!"

"Did you send me that dream?" I asked.

"Yes, I wanted to show you that he's safe and being cared for," she said.

"But why is he with Calypso?" I asked.

"Wow, you really are smart, figuring out that he landed on Calypso's island. Well, I sent him there. I know it's kind of cruel playing with their hearts like that, but I just can't help myself. After all, we haven't had a classic love triangle in centuries! My job was getting so boring before you two kids came along."

"Love triangle?" I said, confused. "So let me get this straight. You supposedly set me and Percy up to love each other, then shipped him off to Calypso's island so that they would fall in love?" I asked, getting angrier by the second.

"Exactly!"

"Do you realize how that makes me feel?" I asked her.

"Of course! Why else would I have done it?"

"Because you're cruel? What kind of person toys with people's emotions for fun besides you? I know you're supposed to make my relationship with Percy either harder, or easier, or both, but I really don't want your help. I want Percy to love me for being me, not because some goddess made him."

Aphrodite smiled at me. "I am helping you. You just realized what you really want from Percy. Do you want to know a secret?" She didn't wait for my answer. "Percy loves you for being you, just like you said. I know it was harsh and cruel to send him there, but sometimes, you almost have to lose somebody to find out how much they really mean to you."

"I've heard that before," I told her. Aphrodite laughed. It sounded like wind chimes from the Isles of the Blest. Don't ask me how I know that, it's a long story.

"Annabeth, I've really enjoyed talking with you. Artemis and your mother never want to talk to me about love. I suppose that's because they're always going to be maidens. Boring! But still, if you ever need advice, all you have to do is ask." The goddess of love erupted into a shower of sweet smelling bubbles, and I gagged.

"Is it true?" I asked myself. "Does Percy really love me, or Aphrodite just playing with me again?" I put my head in my hands, and groaned. When I looked up again, the sky was getting lighter. "That's just what I need, Apollo and a terrible haiku to cheer me up," I said to myself sarcastically. I looked around me, waiting for his laugh, but when none came, I sighed. _Percy would have laughed at that..._

I walked back to my cabin quietly, and sat back in bed. I heard the soft rhythm of my family's snores and breathing, and soon I was drifting off too.

The next two weeks were worse than a millennium in the fields of punishment.

On the news, Mt. St. Helens had erupted. Everyone knew it was Percy's fault, but nobody knew how he managed it. We all knew he was powerful, but making a volcano erupt? Scary.

Every once in a while, I would feel like spontaneously combusting. I cried my eyes out. Silena would comfort me, but I knew she didn't understand what I was going through.

The worst part was the dreams. I kept having them about Percy and Calypso, and I was forced to watch as they grew closer and closer. Percy was very thin, but he seemed okay enough. I saw the way he looked at her, and the way she would hesitantly return his gaze. Percy never looked at me like that. I was really jealous. I mean, she was beautiful; to be admired by anyone. She was thoughtful and caring, and just a wonderful person in general. What did I have? Smarts? Sarcasm? I was nothing in comparison to her. The day before he would be declared dead, I had my last dream.

I was on the island again, it was early in the morning. I was in Calypso's garden, watching her talk to him.

"I promised I would not offer," she said, looking at him lovingly.

"Offer what?" I heard him say.

"For you to stay."

"Stay... like... forever?" he asked, so dense as always. Some things never change.

"You would be immortal on this island," she whispered. "You would never age or die. You could leave the fight to others, Percy Jackson. You could escape your prophecy." I could feel my heart trying to break free from my chest. Would he say yes?

Percy just stared at her stunned. "Just like that?" he asked.

She nodded. "Just like that."

I could see the indecision on his face. He opened his mouth to speak, and I woke up screaming, "NOOOO!" my whole cabin woke with a start.

"What's wrong, Annabeth?" Malcom asked.

"Are you okay?"

"Did you have a bad dream?"

"Yeah... yeah, I'm fine. It was just a nightmare," I said, trying to sound like I said I was.

I gathered my silken sheets tighter around me. _Is Percy going to stay?_ I thought to myself. Of _course he is, who am I kidding? Calypso is perfect. I know Percy doesn't want to die, who does? If he had the chance, he would escape his prophecy, right?_ I could of questioned myself for hours, but I decided I wanted to take my mind off of Percy and Calypso. Easier said than done.

I quietly dressed and grabbed my hat and knife. I jogged into the woods, needing some distraction. I ran all the way to Zeus's Fist. _If time travels faster in the Labyrinth, I can just stay down there for a couple of minutes and come out later,_ I reasoned. I put on my hat.

I passed the guards, and slipped into the crevice. I leaned against the cool wall of the corridor and daydreamed. Somehow, I managed to keep my mind off Percy, and think about architecture. I realized I had been down there, for a while now, so I emerged from the crack.

The guards had changed, so I must have been gone longer than I thought. It was about three-ish judging from the sun's angle. I jogged back to camp. Connor Stoll told me Chiron had been looking for me, so I walked to the Big House.

I pushed open the door, and saw Chiron sitting by the fireplace. "Ah, Annabeth there you are," he said. "Where were you? I looked everywhere."

"Oh, I... went for a walk. Just needed to clear my head," I said, hoping he bought my lie.

"I see," he said looking at me suspiciously. "I was just arranging some things for tomorrow," he said.

"What's tomorrow?" I asked.

"Er... Percy's ceremony."

"Oh," I said. I had completely forgotten.

"I understand that you two were very close, and I thought it would be good if you did the honors of burning his shroud. You could give a speech... That is, if you feel like it," he said.

"Yeah," I said. "Of course I will... It's just... he's not dead."

"Annabeth-"

"He's NOT dead. Just..." I said chewing on my lip. "he might not come back."

"What do you mean?" Chiron asked.

"I've been having dreams about Percy. Then, Aphrodite visited me and told me she was messing with us, and that she was the one who sent him to Calypso's-" Crap. I had said too much.

"Percy is with Calypso?" he asked incredulously.

"Yeah," I said. "Aphrodite told me so. She said something about a love triangle."

Chiron snorted, sounding suspiciously like a horse. "That's her, always messing with young heroes. I really should have a word with her... Anyway, you will do the honors?"

"Yeah," I said. "He's as good as dead if he stays with her," I said turning and walking out.

"Annabeth-" the slam of the porch door cut him off.

The rest of the day was torture. I tried to plan what I would talk about tomorrow, but I couldn't focus. I decided to play it by ear when the words of my eleventh draft started floating off the page and spiraling around my head. I took a nap and completely skipped training lessons. I figured everyone could cut me some slack.

Dinner and the campfire was quiet. I headed to bed, but I wouldn't be able to sleep. I drifted off sometime around midnight, but woke up at least twice every hour.

The next morning, I didn't get out of bed until breakfast. If dinner last night was quiet, breakfast was silent. Sure, there were a few murmured whispers here and there, but nobody was rowdy like usual. The rest of the day was uneventful until late afternoon.

We all filed into the amphitheater. I sat in the front row, barely holding back tears, realizing what we were about to do. A small girl tended to the fire in the pit, but I didn't notice until later. Chiron stood up in front of us, and started to speak.

"You all know Percy Jackson. He was a very loyal friend to all of us. If he hadn't been here, there would be war between the Gods, monsters within our borders, and we would have lost Lady Artemis, not to mention a great deal of campers." Chiron looked at me. I couldn't hold back my tears. "We must face facts though. We must assume he is dead. After so long a silence, it is unlikely our prayers will be answered. I have asked his best surviving friend to do the final honors." I stood up, and took the shroud from him. It was sea-green, just like Percy's eyes. It had a golden trident embroidered on it. I watched as my tears fell on the beautiful woven fabric.

I walked up to the flames, trying to compose myself. I set the shroud afire, and sighed. I could let go. I think. I turned to face the crowd of campers. I took a shuddering breath, and said, "He was probably the bravest friend I've ever had. He-" I stopped, seeing a mess of black hair over the heads of my friends. Just below, there were beautiful sea-green eyes staring at me. I could feel the blush come to my face. "He's right there!" I exclaimed.

_He didn't stay?_ I thought to myself. _He didn't stay!_ I was so surprised. I thought for sure he would stay with Calypso, but I had been wrong. Percy didn't take his eyes off me until Beckendorf regained his composure and slapped Percy on the back. "Percy!" he said, obviously delighted.

Campers crowded around him, and there were some mutters from the Ares cabin. Chiron clip-clopped over to him, and everyone scrambled out of the way. "Well," he sighed. "I don't believe I've ever been happier to see a camper return. But you must tell me-"

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?!" I practically screamed, finally getting over my shock. I shoved everyone out of my way, moving towards Percy. He looked kind of scared of me. I reached him, and gave him a football-worthy tackle-hug. If I could have frozen that one moment forever, I would have. I noticed everyone was silent, and I released him, drawing away. Percy's face was stunned.

"I-" Crap. "_We_ thought you were dead, Seaweed Brain!" I said. That was close. I almost said 'I thought you were dead'.

"I'm sorry, I got lost."

"LOST?!" I yelled. "Two weeks, Percy? Where in the world-" I mostly just said it to mask the dreams I had been having about him and to make him feel guilty.

I think Chiron caught on. "Annabeth," he said, giving me a look. "Perhaps we should discuss this somewhere more private, shall we?" he told everyone to go back to their normal activities, and took Percy and I to the Big House.

Percy gave a dozen lame excuses for where he had been saying that he had gotten marooned on an island. He told us about what he did at Mt. St. Helens too. He wouldn't even look me in the eye. I couldn't believe him! I knew that he was with Calypso, but he would make excuses and lie. I tried to keep my anger in check, and it worked pretty well for a while. Until...

"You've been gone two weeks," I said, trying to keep my voice steady. "When I heard the explosion I thought-"

"I know," he interrupted. "I'm sorry. But I figured out how to get through the Labyrinth. I talked to Hephaestus."

"He told you the answer?" I asked incredulously.

"Well, he sort of told me that I already knew. And I do. I understand now."

He told us about mortals seeing through the mist, and suggested Rachel Dare. I felt betrayed, as an understatement. Sure, Calypso, Rachel, and me. Aphrodite must really like us if she's making it this hard. I noticed my mouth was hanging open, and quickly snapped it shut.

"Percy, that's crazy!" I said.

We argued for a little while about it, and I hated him for even thinking of asking her to do it. "You are the _single most annoying_ person I have ever met!" I yelled, stomping out of the room. I heard Percy say something while the door was slamming, but I didn't wait to find out.

I stomped down to the arena to blow off some steam. Halfway there, I remembered that's where Mrs. O'Leary was. He would probably go visit her, and he was the last person I wanted to see. I changed directions, and went to go skulk in my cabin instead.

I glanced out of the window at one point and saw he-who-will-eternally-piss-me-off talking to Clarisse and stroking Mrs. O'Leary's fur. The conch horn blew for dinner, and I avoided eye contact with him the entire meal.

During the campfire, I saw Percy quietly slip away, so I followed him. As I walked toward his cabin, I prepared to chew him out for earlier. I was planning to tell him all about my dreams and how I knew where he had been.

Percy entered his cabin and slammed the door. I wasn't sure whether or not to go after him. I sat in my puddle of indecision for about ten minutes, and before I could stop myself I knocked on the door.

"Go away." Percy's voice cracked. I ignored him and entered anyway. He was sitting on his bunk, staring at the wall. "I really don't need you here right now," he said, turning to look at me. There were tears glistening in his eyes, and I immediately changed my reason for being there.

"Percy, I-"

"I know why you're here. You're going to chew me out for being lost for two weeks and saying the truth about Rachel," he said, turning back to glare at the wall. "I don't need you, Annabeth," he said. It sounded more like he was trying to convince himself. Even if he was just saying it, I couldn't help the stab of pain in my heart.

"Percy, I don't care if you don't need me. You might not, but... I need you. I think I was the one who was really lost these past few weeks. You're my best friend." I came and sat beside him on his bed. He looked at me, salty tears threatening to spill from his beautiful sea-green eyes. We stayed like that for a while.

"Do you miss her?" I asked eventually.

"Miss who?" he said. I wasn't sure if he was faking, or genuinely confused.

"Calypso."

He paused. "How did you... yeah I do. She- it's a long story."

I nodded. "I dreamed about you," I said.

"I dreamed about you too."

I smiled. "Does my hair really smell like lemons?"

He smiled at me and leaned in, sniffing my hair. "Yup." We sat in a comforting silence for a while. "Did you miss me?" he asked.

"More than I miss Thalia. Why, did you miss me?"

"Questionable," he said. I punched him lightly on the arm, and he grinned at me. "Yeah, more than anything." I grinned at him. He gave me a goofy smile in return. I leaned against him. There wasn't really anything romantic about it, however much I wanted it to be. It was purely friendship. Or, at least that's what we told ourselves.

We sat together, and eventually Percy's breathing slowed. I tucked him into bed.

I leaned in, and kissing his forehead. I quietly walked to the door, and looked back at the boy that I loved. "Goodnight, Seaweed Brain. Sleep well, because tomorrow's going to be one hell of a day."

* * *

**They're so cute. -has complete geek out moment-**

**Okay, I'm back. :D**

**And now I'm leaving again. R&R please!**


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